PAOLI, PENNSYLVANIA, July 19, 2002: A leaky envelope of Hindu ceremonial ashes closed down the Paoli Post Office yesterday morning, as police and postal officials worried about anthrax. But it turned out to be just a scare. After an hour and a half evacuation, while postal inspectors confirmed that the package was not dangerous, the office resumed operation, a few minutes after 9:30 a.m. “No mail was delayed,” said Debra Whyte, spokeswoman for the Postal Inspection Service. Whyte said postal workers started worrying after they noticed that a letter mailed to a local woman from a temple in India started leaking a “powdery substance” while it was bundled for delivery, about 7:55 a.m. yesterday. The workers called the police, who evacuated the building, and postal inspectors, who determined the powder was ceremonial ash from burnt wood (vibhuti, which is actually burnt cow dung). Hindu temples in America have been careful about mailing vibhuti for concern about just such an incident.
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